Trip Across Korea Part 4

After dropping Kristen off at the bus terminal I headed north to Andong and decided to visit a traditional village (하회마을). I arrived about two hours before the place was closing and so I strolled along aimlessly looking at all the different houses. I decided to buy some soju for the friend who lent me his car. Andong is known for its soju, so it was a nice gift. That night I stayed in a jjimjilbang and decided to get up early to visit another traditional village in Andong, however it was closed when I got there. Realizing that I had nothing to do for three hours I decided I would just drive straight to Gangneung.

My first stop was the Terrarosa Coffee Shop in Gangneung. I decided I wanted to go to their roasting house so I went to their bigger location which was part of a small village area. I wasn’t impressed by the coffee, but I liked the interior of the coffee shop and the croissant I ate. My next stop was anmok beach which is lined with coffee shops. I went to Cafe Santori and enjoyed my coffee and decided to explore the beach. I went searching for seashells and took in the smell of salt water. While sitting on the beach I tried to get in contact with some of my students and no one was answering.

I headed out into the countryside to see Boheung Temple (보흥사). It was a beautiful drive out there and the temple was under construction when I arrived. I snapped a few photos and decided to leave since there was not much to see or do. I decided to go to a different beach and then spent the night in a Jjimjilbang. It was an early night, but I had plans to get up early and see the sunrise at the beach.

Seaweed drying on wooden racks.

I was able to see sunrise, but unable to see my former students. I think I just had really bad timing as there wasn’t a soul at the school. I went to see my old coteacher, Rami, and her newborn for a bit. It was so nice seeing her and catching up while eating pizza. I told her that I would come and visit again. Traveling around Korea was a lot of fun! And it made me realize how much I love the greenery and smaller areas of Korea. Which means I just need to get out more and make more trips around Korea in 2016!